After we land, Howard and his wife come strolling out like people landing helicopters on their field between the tumbleweeds and the pigs is not unusual. Turns out that it really isn't. Chuck does it all the time. He just flies up there, and Howard's place is easy to spot because there's this big kind fo maroonish-pinkish barn that can be seen for miles around.

Howard takes us around to his house, we sit and drink some coke and seven-up, then Chuck, Erin, Howard and I walk back to the helicopter to continue on to Death Valley.

There were a few more ridge lines between us and Death Valley. If you appreciate desert scenery, it is quite striking. The mountains are rugged, and between them are a number of dry lake beds still being used by smugglers for night drops. This we get first hand from Erin. One of his National Guard flying duties is keeping tabs on this sort of thing.

We cross the final ridge into Death Valley, and the drop-off is dramatic. The bottom of the valley is actually 165 feet below sea level. There actually is a real airport, with a paved runway and a parking area, near Furnace Creek. There are no public facilities there, but there seems to be a considerable amount of leisure aviation coming in and out.
There actually is a lot of beauty to this area, and at some point on my journey I hope to see more of it from the surface level.

After a short stay at the airport, and using the rest room facilities (which as best we could figure were a clump of acacia trees just off the parking ramp) we get back aboard and head back to the east. We stop again in Pharump to drop off Howard and again terrify the pigs and lizards, then fly back to North Las Vegas airport.

After we return to Chuck's house, we eat, then I nap until about 9:00 PM. Then, I get up and do some work on this web site until about 2:30 AM.